On June 28, 1997, then-heavyweight champion boxer Evander Holyfield met No. 1-ranked Mike Tyson for a rematch of their fight just seven months earlier, a surprising win by Holyfield.

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That upset was nothing compared to the events of the sequel.

Billed as "The Sound and The Fury," all there was by the end of the third round was the sound of cascading boos, furious at the end of a fight that saw Tyson bite his opponent in the ear twice, with one chomp severing a roughly 1-inch piece from Holyfield's right ear.

AP Photo/Jack Smith

Evander Holyfield reacts after he was bit in the right ear by Mike Tyson in the third round of their WBA Heavyweight match Saturday, June 28, 1997, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Tyson said his actions were in response to headbutting from Holyfield earlier in the fight, but his opponent said "I'm the man, and he can't handle me. This individual cannot handle that I did it before. He lost his cool."

Following the first bite during a tie-up, referee Mills Lane -- a late replacement for Mitch Halpern -- wanted to disqualify Tyson, telling an official in the ring "he's disqualified. He bit his ear. I can see the bite marks." Lane relented, however, saying he'd give Tyson a two-point deduction.

The fight continued, and seconds later Tyson bit Holyfield in another clinch. The match was ended, and an enraged Tyson attempted to enter the crowd when a fan threw a bottle toward him. A suspension from boxing followed.

AP Photo/Lennox McLendon

Mike Tyson, center, reacts to the crowd as he leaves the ring following his bout with WBA heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield, Saturday night, June 28, 1997, at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas. Tyson was disqualified after biting Holyfield’s ear twice in the third round.

This was the reaction from reporters following one of one boxing's most bizarre scenes:

The New York Daily News' Michael Katz was scathing: "Biting off more than he could chew, Mike Tyson was disqualified for twice sinking his teeth into Evander Holyfield in the third round of last night's rematch between the two biggest money-making fighters in history. It was the kind of performance that, outside the ring, could be construed as a parole violation. Tyson may not have lost his freedom last night, but by biting off a piece of Holyfield's right ear, spitting it on the canvas, and getting disqualified after trying for a second helping on the other ear, his place in history will certainly be on the pages with the villains and cowards."

Sports Illustrated's Richard Hoffer may have been even more harsh: "Watching him bite Evander Holyfield's ears, actually chewing off and spitting out a piece, as he did in their rematch, was to be plunged farther back in our evolution than is comfortable for anybody. It will be a long time before boxing recovers from this horror. Tyson, who had been knocked out by Holyfield last November, was desperate to restore his mystique. The circus wasn't much good without his threat of brutality."

The New York Times' Tom Friend said it simply: "Mike Tyson could not beat him, so he bit him."

The Las Vegas Sun's Steve Carp compared the event to a professional wrestling match, instead of a prizefight, writing "controversy took a back seat to the absurd."

The Philadelphia Inquirer's sports section the next morning included one of a slew of pun headlines, with "Bite of the Century."